Wheels made from composite materials, such as fibre-reinforced plastics, have made major advances in recent years. However, even recent designs can have certain drawbacks. For example, some wheels that experience very high and/or sudden axial or radial loads or impacts can experience a loss in the structural integrity of the wheel, which can lead to tire deflation and/or a loss of control of a vehicle. This is particularly a concern for automobiles and motorbikes that experience high speeds. Additionally structural damage to a rim can mean the entire rim needs to be replaced, for safety reasons, owing to the difficulty of accurate damage assessment and the lack of easily replaceable elements, rather than simply being repaired. Sometimes, damage can go undetected on rims, which can be a safety problem if the wheels are used on, and then fail on, a vehicle.